In Brief... World News Review: Berlin Store Fined for Skirting Sunday Restrictions
A Berlin department store that tested Germany's strict shopping laws by opening on Sunday drew tens of thousands of excited shoppers-and a $27,000 fine.
A Berlin department store that tested Germany's strict shopping laws by opening on Sunday drew tens of thousands of excited shoppers-and a $27,000 fine.
The Berlin Office of Workers' Protection said Monday it would fine Kaufhof, a large store on Alexanderplatz in eastern Berlin, that tried to get around the law by labeling everything sold as souvenirs. German laws that prevent businesses from opening on Sunday allow exceptions for those catering to tourists. Store officials said they would appeal the fine.
About 50,000 shoppers flocked to the Kaufhof on Sunday, buying goods ranging from clothing to appliances labeled with stickers reading, "Berlin Souvenir." The store will face a fine of up to $54,500 if it tries to open this Sunday, said Robert Rath, the worker protection agency's spokesman. Officials may also order the store closed if it continues, he said.
Unions, churches and local government heads oppose the push for Sunday shopping, arguing it is unnecessary and unfair to workers. If Sunday becomes a day like all the others, "then there will be no common time for families to be together with friends who are still at work," Margret Moenig-Raane, president of the Trade, Banking and Insurance Union, told Deutschlandradio Berlin.
An Article from:
World News and Prophecy: August 1999
Course Content
Darris McNeely
Darris McNeely works at the United Church of God home office in Cincinnati, Ohio. He and his wife, Debbie, have served in the ministry for more than 43 years. They have two sons, who are both married, and four grandchildren. Darris is the Associate Media Producer for the Church. He also is a resident faculty member at the Ambassador Bible Center teaching Acts, Fundamentals of Belief and World News and Prophecy. He enjoys hunting, travel and reading and spending time with his grandchildren.
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
Peter Eddington
Peter serves at the home office as Interim Manager of Media and Communications Services.
He studied production engineering at the Swinburne Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Australia, and is a journeyman machinist. He moved to the United States to attend Ambassador College in 1980. He graduated from the Pasadena campus in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts degree and married his college sweetheart, Terri. Peter was ordained an elder in 1992. He served as assistant pastor in the Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo, California, congregations from 1995 through 1998 and the Cincinnati, Ohio, congregations from 2010 through 2011.
